Saturday, February 7, 2026 2/7/2026

Elucidating the causal associations underlying Alzheimer's disease

Award Number: R00AG070109
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 02/01/2021
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2025

Group Awards By:

View Award Description

Elucidating the causal associations underlying Alzheimer's disease - Project Summary Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a global crisis facing the aging population and society as a whole. With the number of people living with AD predicted to rise dramatically in the coming decades, it is imperative to pursue research that aims to reduce the expected incidence of dementia, such as identifying modifiable risk factors for lifestyle interventions. A prerequisite to establishing lifestyle interventions is demonstrating a causal effect of the proposed exposure (a risk factor) on AD or AD endophenotypes. The overarching objective of this research program is to enhance our understanding of the causal relationships underlying Alzheimer’s disease by utilizing genetically informed causal inference methods. We will use state-of-the-art techniques in statistical genetics that exploit the polygenic risk scoring (PRS) and Mendelian randomization (MR) approaches. PRS provide an estimate of an individual's genetic propensity to a trait and can be used to infer genetic overlap between phenotypes via predicting one phenotype from the PRS of another. The first aim will identify traits that have a shared genetic etiology with AD outcomes by conducting a phenome-wide PRS analysis. This will prioritize putative disease-modifying traits for AD outcomes. The second aim will conduct an MR phenome-wide association study to identify novel risk factors for AD that have not been identified using previous epidemiological approaches, while prioritizing hypotheses identified in the current literature (e.g. vascular health). MR uses genetic variants as proxies for exposures to provide an estimate of the causal association between an intermediate exposure and an outcome and conceptually similar to a ‘genetic randomized control trial’ due to the random allocation of genotypes from parents to offspring. In the final aim, PRS and MR will be used to determine if individual risk factors differentially contribute to the development of AD in at-risk subgroups by performing sex, ancestry, age, and APOE ε4 stratified analyses to identify subgroup- specific risk profiles and predictors. The proposed research will elucidate the risk factors underlying AD, which will have a significant impact on the development of lifestyle interventions to prevent AD and may explain differences in risk by sex and ancestry. Under the guidance of his mentor Dr. Alison Goate and co-mentor Dr. Kristine Yaffe, and a team of other advisors, Dr. Andrews will pursue a rigorous training program to accomplish the aims of this award and to develop into an independent researcher. This training will focus on developing skills in (1) causal inference, (2) big data analytics, (3) computational genomics, and (4) professional development. Development in these domains will be accomplished via coursework, attendance at conferences and workshops, gaining experience in providing mentoring and leading teams, and regular feedback from his advisory committee. Overall, the proposed study addresses a crucial and timely unmet need, and the additional skills developed during this award will provide a strong foundation for the candidate to establish independent leadership in the genetic epidemiology of Alzheimer’s disease.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $244,173 )
2025	2025	REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO, THE	1855 FOLSOM ST STE 425	SAN FRANCISCO	CA	94103	SAN FRANCISCO	USA	Aging Research	000	5	12/9/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$224,241
2025	2025	REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO, THE	1855 FOLSOM ST STE 425	SAN FRANCISCO	CA	94103	SAN FRANCISCO	USA	Aging Research	001	5	7/15/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$19,932
														Subtotal = $244,173

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $248,898 )
2024	2024	REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO, THE	1855 FOLSOM ST STE 425	SAN FRANCISCO	CA	94143	SAN FRANCISCO	USA	Aging Research	000	4	2/2/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$224,009
2024	2024	REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO, THE	1855 FOLSOM ST STE 425	SAN FRANCISCO	CA	94103	SAN FRANCISCO	USA	Aging Research	001	4	5/13/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$24,889
														Subtotal = $248,898

Issue Date FY: 2023 ( Subtotal = $377,361 )
2023	2023	REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO, THE	1855 FOLSOM ST STE 425	SAN FRANCISCO	CA	94143	SAN FRANCISCO	USA	Aging Research	001	3	7/24/2023	EXTENSION WITH OR WITHOUT FUNDS	$128,361
2023	2023	REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO, THE	1855 FOLSOM ST STE 425	SAN FRANCISCO	CA	94143	SAN FRANCISCO	USA	Aging Research	000	3	12/7/2022	EXTENSION WITH OR WITHOUT FUNDS	$249,000
														Subtotal = $377,361

Grand Total All Awards = $870,432

Top

All Categories

About

Search

Reports

Data Submission

Award Information

Elucidating the causal associations underlying Alzheimer's disease

Award Number: R00AG070109

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 02/01/2021

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 11/30/2025

Federal Websites

Department of Health & Human Services

HHS Operating Divisions

HHS Staff Divisions

Download A Document Viewer